We Keep Our Secrets to Ourselves
by riptidedauntlessgryffindor
Summary: Percy has been secretly watching the girl next door through the window of his bedroom for a whole summer, and as far as he knows, she has never been out of her house. But on the first day of school, she joins him on the walk, and they become friends. Friends are supposed to tell each other everything, true? But these two...well, they keep their secrets to themselves. (Percabeth AU)
1. Introduction

**Hey, everyone. This is my new story, "We Keep Our Secrets to Ourselves."**

 **Trigger warning–allusions to child abuse, but hopefully nothing too bad.**

 **This is the introduction, and I hope you like it. Next chapter will be posted soon!**

 **-SOS**

 **Introduction:**

The girl was broken inside.

She was sick and tired of this world. She had sat through many a night of some random woman's screams coming from her father's bedroom. And many a night, those screams had, unwillingly, been her own, though for a different reason.

The girl knew it was bad. She should have told somebody when it first started, after her mother died in kindergarten. But her father kept her locked up, and she had no access to a phone. As far as she could tell, no one even knew she existed.

Sometimes, when she lay in bed staring up at the ceiling with nothing better to do, she wished it all would end. Dying peacefully in her sleep sounded like a good idea half the time. "What did I do to deserve this?" was the only thought that ever ran through her head.

Wondering if anyone cared was how she spent her days; she knew no one did, however, she still had one tiny sliver of hope.

That little sliver of hope paid off well. One day, her dad was out getting drunk and he got into a car crash. "Luckily," (according to the hospital) he wasn't dead, but he was going to be in treatment for a long time.

Of course, the girl couldn't survive at home on her own. So CPS sent a woman to look after her. They lady they sent was called Tarah Sparks, and she was kind, gentle and patient.

Strict measures were to be taken. No one knew that she had been abused by her dad. When faced with the chance to tell, the poor girl chickened out. She was too embarrassed to show the bruise marks all over her body. She didn't even wince when they shook her un-healing arm.

But the authorities knew she had never been to school before. What they did not know was that she had been homeschooling herself through books that were left in her basement after her mother, who was a teacher, died. Even if they thought she was not smart, though she really was, they would still have to send her to school.

And there begins her real adventure…


	2. Blue Waffles and Blonde Hair

**Author's note:**

 **Thank you for being so nice and supportive! Here's the first chapter of "We Keep Our Secrets to Ourselves."**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 1: Blue Waffles and Blonde Hair:**

"Perseus Jackson," called Sally Jackson from down the stairs, the smell of blue waffles cooking wafting up along with her voice. Briefly, the boy who was being addressed wondered if his mom regretted never giving him a middle name, especially since she called for him very often. But then he realized that though his mother did call him a lot, she very rarely yelled at him in a bad way. So, just having a full name he hated was enough for him.

"Good morning, Mom," Percy shouted back, zipping up his jeans and throwing on a red polo shirt. He dragged a comb through his messy black hair and looked at his reflection in the mirror. Satisfied with his outfit, he sat down on his bed to pull on some socks, not matching ones, of course; he needed all the luck he could get.

After he was ready, he peered out the window, just in case. But his actions were to no avail; the girl was not there. The last time Percy had seen the girl next door was three nights ago. She had been crying, her blonde hair covering her face and her hands over her tear-filled grey eyes. Through the window he could see her shut the light off every night. Otherwise, he could have watched her longer.

"Percy, are you coming? The waffles are getting cold," Percy's mom's voice was getting desperate. She also sounded hungry. "I'll eat all of them myself if you don't come down."

"Okay, okay, I'm coming," Percy yelled. He took one last peek out the window, hoping the girl would be there. But she wasn't, and there was no sign of her either. The light was off, and even though he could sort-of see into her room, there was no figure on the bed like there had been at this time all summer. Furrowing his brow, he sighed. Maybe she had woken up early and had already gotten ready for school?

Percy had never seen the girl next door come out of her house. She should be going to his school, or at least his district, because they lived next door to each other, about a block from the school. In fact, Percy walked there every day. But he didn't know whether she did actually go to his school, because he had just moved to the house he was in just before summer started last year. It was possible he had been too distracted with fitting in to notice a beautiful girl like her.

"Percy!" his mom screamed in a last attempt to get her son downstairs to eat before he was late for school. Percy sighed again, and closed his curtains. He whispered a soft goodbye to the window next door, and then raced downstairs.

"Love you so much, Mom," Percy said quickly, kissing his mother on the cheek. "But you know I love your waffles more." As his mom put a plate of perfectly blue waffles in front of him, she untied her apron that said, "Kiss the Cook," which Percy had already done anyway. Before she could tell him not to use too much syrup, he grabbed two waffles from the heaping stack, and slipped his feet into his sneakers. "Bye, Mom. See you later."

"Bye, sweetie. Be nice to everyone, and no friends over if you have homework for more than one subject," his mom warned. She opened the door for Percy, whose hands were busy finishing tying his shoes and holding his waffles. She gave him a quick side-hug, which he escaped jokingly.

"I'll come home quickly, or should I take the bus?" Percy asked, stepping out the door.

"Whichever, Percy. I have to start working, okay? See you later." The door closed, and Percy was confused by her sudden change of attitude. Then he realized she had her first meeting with a potential publisher and a green car was coming down the street at the moment. A very fancy green car, possibly one of a publisher. Percy decided to clear out of there.

He started to walk down the street, and he was just past the girl next door's driveway when the door to her house opened, and the beautiful blonde came out. She waved to a woman inside, and walked slowly down her front steps once the door closed behind her. Percy waited until the girl caught up with him to keep walking. He wondered if she would talk to him.

"Hi," the girl said, standing next to him awkwardly, and playing with her hair nervously. "I'm Annabeth. Annabeth Chase."

 **Thanks for reading. Leave a review; let me know what you thought!**


	3. We're Friends Now

**Enjoy! Please review, telling me what you think so far!**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 2: We're Friends Now:**

Percy couldn't stop the smile from taking over his face. He was finally meeting the girl next door! "Uh, hi," he said nervously. "I'm Perseus Jackson. But don't call me that. You can call me Percy. All my friends do."

"Oh, so we're friends now?" was Annabeth's response. "We just met!" But she was grinning good-naturedly.

"Not yet, I don't think," Percy said slowly, looking for her reaction. "But I hope we will be someday."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Annabeth replied, biting her lip to hide an even bigger smile. "So thank you."

Shrugging, Percy hid his affectionate laughter with a cough. He wanted to ask why she seemed so happy, when he had seen her crying just days before. But though he had ignored most of the manners lessons his mother had taught him, he knew it was rude to inquire into somebody else's personal business, especially if you had just met the person only minutes before.

"So, um," Annabeth started. She seemed anxious. "Have you been to this school before, Percy?" Her voice sounded good saying his name, Percy thought. He swallowed hard, and cleared his throat (though he was really trying to clear his head) before answering.

"Yeah, I moved here last year, towards the end of the school year last year." Was it a good time to ask if she had ever been to the school before? Or even out of the house? Percy took the chance. "What about you? Either I've never seen you in the hallways, or you didn't go to my school last year."

"I...well, I wasn't exactly at your school last year," Annabeth said uncomfortably, looking anywhere but Percy as she did so. "Um, I was at a private school since kindergarten." She played with a thin braided rope bracelet on her wrist, making Percy wonder if she was lying to him.

"And, I didn't see you anywhere this summer," Percy said, knowing he was stepping on treacherous ground. So he gave her an escape. "Were you at a sleepaway camp or something?"

"Uh, yeah," Annabeth said, fidgeting with her rope bracelet even more. Percy knew she was lying, due to the fact that there were no sleepaway camps near where they lived, and he doubted Annabeth had gone anywhere since he had seen her crying every night in her room throughout the summer. Also, she was playing with her bracelet again, a sign Percy interpreted as her not telling the truth.

"Cool," Percy said, though he was itching with questions. Why was she lying? What had she been doing the past summer? And what was it about her that made him like her?

"Is this the school?" Annabeth asked when they came to a stop at the street across from the school. Holding her hand up in thanks to a car who had stopped to let them by as they headed across the street, she said, "It's really big."

"It is pretty big," Percy agreed. "But my old school was bigger. This school is really good, and it's mostly for smart people. But I got in, so it must not be that prestigious!"

"Believe me, any high-school boy who can use the word 'prestigious' in a sentence without batting an eye, is, in my opinion, pretty smart," Annabeth joked. Then her face turned serious. "What time does school start, though? I don't want to be late."

"We're not going to be late," Percy said, checking the time on the clock on top of the church next to the school. "The time's seven-oh-nine. School begins at seven-thirty. We're allowed to hang out in the front of the building until school starts; if you want you can stay with me."

"You can't call me Annie," Annabeth said suddenly, stopping in her tracks. Then, realizing what had just happened, she blushed. "Sorry. I was thinking about how you would be a good friend, and then I remembered you saying I could call you Percy. But you can't, okay? You absolutely cannot call me Annie."

"I...I wasn't going to," Percy said softly. "Are you okay?" he asked, for Annabeth's grey eyes were beginning to fill with tears, and her lips beginning to tremble. "Do you want a hug?"

"No!" Annabeth exclaimed. "No physical contact, please. Just...I don't know. If you don't want to be friends with me, if you think I'm too weird, you can leave. I'll be fine."

"I'm not moving," Percy murmured, making Annabeth sigh in relief. He knew she really didn't want him to leave, so he had done the good, caring thing to do. Stayed. "I'll always stay with you."

He didn't realize how deep those words would imprint in Annabeth's brain. But what he did know was that they were completely, totally, and utterly true.

 **Don't forget to review, favorite, and follow!**


	4. Stay with you and Schedule Comparing

**Oh, hi! Here's the next chapter of "We Keep Our Secrets to Ourselves." I hope you like it, and don't forget to review!**

 **-SOS**

 **C** **hapter 3: "Stay with you" and Schedule Comparing**

" _I'll always stay with you."_

Percy replayed the words over and over in his head as they walked in silence to the school. He wondered whether Annabeth had taken his words to heart, because those were the exact words his dad had said to his mom. Before, of course. Before his dad joined the Marines, and never came back. And if Percy really meant the words he said, he would have to prove it to himself, because all he could remember was the video recording of his two-year-old self asking when his daddy would come home. And the first (but not last) time he had ever seen his mom cry.

"Percy?" Annabeth's voice penetrated his thoughts, though if any voice were to interrupt him, he would choose her. Her voice seemed powerful, but he had only ever heard her talk softly, so he wasn't sure of its full value. Annabeth waved her hand in front of Percy's face. "Percy, are you in there?"

"Yeah, sorry," Percy muttered, mentally cursing himself for getting so carried away with his thoughts. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing," Annabeth answered, playing with her rope bracelet again. Percy glanced at it, wondering how the bracelet, which was sized for a six-year-old, fit her. Well, her wrists were pretty thin. But was she some sort of fairy, or did she just have small bones? He dismissed the thought, telling himself to focus; when Annabeth played with her bracelet, she was lying.

"Uh huh," Percy said dryly. Then he switched to a more caring tone: "Are you sure you don't have a question? Because I probably have an answer…"

"Well, um, this is kind of cliché, but…can we compare schedules? Because I don't want to be stuck with some random strangers and teachers I don't know without knowing where you – who's apparently my friend now – are. You know? I...I guess I just don't want to be alone." Annabeth bit her lip. "I don't know. I'm going to shut up now."

"No, you're fine! Of course we can compare schedules. Here, I'll get mine right now." Percy reached into his black backpack, and pulled the first piece of paper he could feel out of the bag. Thankfully, it was his schedule. "Who do you have for homeroom?" he asked, reading his schedule to see who he had.

"Mrs. Robins," Annabeth replied, her schedule in her hand as well. "Do you know her? I met her yesterday. She's really nice, but all of the annoying people are going to make fun of her and tease her behind her back because she's, like, the skinniest person alive. And she looks about twenty-five years old. She is the only English teacher for ninth grade, so we're bound to have her at one point or another."

"Wait, when did you meet her?" Percy asked. He knew _he_ didn't go around meeting his teachers, even if he was outside of his house a lot. But Annabeth hadn't even left her house, unless she had snuck out, and she had already met one teacher; conveniently, the one who was her homeroom and English teacher.

"Um, I was at, um, the, um…ice cream place down the street, and a lot of people were there," Annabeth mumbled, her free hand automatically moving to fiddle with her rope bracelet. "My, uh, mom and I walked over there, and we, uh, talked. Turns out I met most of the high school teachers." She bit her lip and looked at the floor, satisfied with her answer.

Percy wanted to get mad at Annabeth for not telling him everything, but he, of all people, knew that sometimes people kept their secrets to themselves. So all he said was, "Cool. What class do you have first period?"

They continued to list their classes, finding out the many classes they had together. Annabeth was so surprised at the amount of classes they shared that she blurted out, "In the books I read, girls don't get to have this many classes with a boy they…" Then she remembered Percy was there, and shut her mouth. "Never mind. Random thought."

"Oh...okay," Percy responded. He wondered why she was keeping so many things from him. But he knew that there were no secrets that time would not reveal. He decided to change the subject. "Hey, do you know the rumors about Mr. Azul? The Spanish teacher…"

As they chatted, their newfound friendship grew stronger, which was a good thing, because who knew what high school could do to a person without a good friend by their side?

 **Don't forget to follow, favorite, and review! See you next chapter!**


	5. Promises and More People

**Sorry it took so long. If you celebrate Christmas, please check out my Christmas countdown story called, "A Very Percabeth Christmas."**

 **Enjoy, and please review, follow, and favorite. All questions and comments are welcome!**

 **-SOS**

 **C** **hapter 4: Promises and More People**

As the two, blonde-haired girl and messy raven-haired boy, walked closer to the school, more students started to arrive. Instead of Percy's responses to Annabeth's questions being short and to the point, they were now distracted and off-topic, like when Annabeth asked him if high school was hard. Percy's immediate answer should have been something along the lines of, "I've never been to high school before; last year was eighth grade, which was middle school." But Percy spent a minute comprehending her question, and then answered. "Well… I'm not sure. I don't know. I hope it's not. But I don't think it is. I'm not sure. Maybe."

After multiple tries to get Percy to listen, Annabeth decided to just give up. Percy didn't notice when she stopped talking, and started slowly walking in front of him and away from him, until he stopped muttering to himself.

"Wait, Annabeth!" he called, running after her. "I'm sorry I got distracted. I was just wondering where my friends were, because we promised each other to meet up once we got to school." Seeing Annabeth's discouraged face, he reassured her, "Don't worry, you can still hang out with me. I think you'll like the people I'm friends with."

"Okay, if you say so," Annabeth said softly. She blinked her eyes shut for a long time, and for a minute Percy thought she was about to cry again, but she just opened her eyes and when she spoke again, it was even quieter than before. "What if no one likes me? I can't go through high school as a loner!"

"Annabeth Chase, I promise, as long as I live, you will never, _ever_ be a loner. You will always have at least one friend, and it will be me. I promise, for real." Percy looked seriously at Annabeth as he stuck out his hand for a pinky swear. "Pinky swear?"

Shaking her head, Annabeth managed a small smile. "Whatever. I know you mean what you say, Percy Jackson." She saw a group of five people coming over to them, two boys and three girls. Percy was waving to them. "Are those your friends?" Annabeth asked, and Percy nodded.

"Come on, I'll introduce you to them!" Percy said, starting to walk faster towards the group of people. Annabeth reluctantly followed, speeding up until the two groups were right next to each other.

The first person Annabeth set her eyes on was a tall, muscular boy with perfectly-gelled dirty blonde hair, and blue eyes with little gold sparkles in them. He was wearing a simple outfit, jeans and a long-sleeved tan shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, but Annabeth still thought he looked pretty hot.

The boy noticed her looking at him, and introduced himself. "Hey, my name is Luke. How about you?"

Even his voice is charming, Annabeth thought. She blushed and said, "I'm Annabeth. Um, yeah." Flustered, she stopped talking.

"That's a cool name, Annabeth," said a girl who looked like the definition of punk. She had black hair hacked off at random angles, which she managed to pull off, and ice-blue eyes. She was wearing a shirt with a Tumblr post printed on it: "I'm 182% punk and 41% rock. (That's 223%) Nobody said being punk rock meant you had to be mathematically correct." She also wore a leather jacket and black ripped skinny jeans. She also noticed Annabeth staring and said, "I'm Grace. Thalia Grace. This one over here's my little brother. You two are probably the same age."

"Hi, I'm Jason," the boy who Thalia was pointing to said. He had completely-blonde hair, with the same ice-blue eyes as his sister, and he was wearing a purple hoodie with jeans. He had his arm around another girl, who Annabeth thought was really pretty in a different sort of way.

"The name's Piper," the girl said. Her hair was brown and looked like the ends had been chopped off, with feathers and beads braided into it. She was wearing a white tank top with gold sequins all over it, and capri-length dark grey leggings. "You look cool. How did you get here?"

"I walked with Percy," Annabeth replied nervously. She knew more questions were bound to come, so she changed the subject. "How about you? Is this your first year of high school too?"

"Yeah," Piper answered. "Percy, you, me, Jason, and Rachel are all in ninth grade. Thalia and Luke are in tenth grade, but we compared schedules and if you have the same free period as Percy, we're all together then."

"Wait, who's Rachel?" Annabeth asked, having not seen the red-haired, green-eyed girl who was standing off to the side, drawing in a sketchbook. From time to time, she would look at Annabeth, which meant… _She was drawing Annabeth!_

"I'm Rachel Elizabeth Dare. I'm the 'resident artist,' as these guys call me." She looked fondly at her friends. "Anyway, I drew you. You have really confusing eyes, but they're really interesting. I had to redraw them ten times because they kept on changing expressions."

"Thank you, I guess," Annabeth said softly, and as everyone else chatted among themselves, she felt sort of at home. Scratch that, she felt better than at home. Because friends were definitely better than her family.


	6. Numbers and Nice Friends

**Author's note-**

 **Hi guys! Sorry for the kind of short chapter. If you have any ships you want to see in this story, then tell me. Thanks!**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 5: Numbers and Nice Friends**

"Annabeth, you coming? You're going to be late," Percy called as everyone started to make their way into the building. "It's time for school."

Nodding, Annabeth looked at the clock. It was exactly seven-thirty, exactly the time Percy had said school started. "I'm coming," she said, following the crowd through the doors. Once they were inside, she caught up to Percy and tried not to lose him in all of the bodies moving through the school. "What locker number are you?" she asked as they walked down the hallway.

"Number 579," he said, loud enough to be heard. "What about you?"

She looked at her schedule. "138, I think. Does this look like a six or an eight to you?"

Percy bent down to look at the paper in Annabeth's hand. He stood up straight after a few seconds and smiled at Annabeth. "Are you telling me you need glasses? They'd look good on you."

"Shut up," she said, giggling. "Was it an eight or a six? I don't want to go the wrong locker by accident."

"It's an eight. You were right the first time." Percy grinned, imagining her trying to open the wrong locker but failing to get it right. "I think our lockers are across the hall from each other. If you need help with opening yours, just ask me."

"Thanks," Annabeth replied softly. "Where's room 37? That's where I have homeroom."

"Wait for me after you finish putting your stuff in your locker and I'll draw you a map of the school," Percy said, nearing his locker. He pointed across the hall. "There's your locker."

After Annabeth dropped off her things in her binder, she found Percy talking to Rachel at his locker. "...and I'll ask my dad if you can come over tomorrow," Rachel was saying. "We can tell them about it then."

Percy agreed with her, and then noticed Annabeth. He reached his hand up to scratch the back of his neck nervously. It was cute, Annabeth thought. Percy _himself_ was cute, but that mannerism just made him cuter.

"Oh, hi, Annabeth. Rachel's in your homeroom, so she's going to walk you there, okay?" Percy said, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "Rachel's nice. She doesn't bite, I promise."

"Well, I bite my food to chew it," Rachel joked, but smiled at Annabeth. "Don't worry. I'll make sure you get there okay."

"I'll get there fine, but where are you going after that?" asked Annabeth. "Is there something else we have to do?"

"No, I'm just going to tell the other members of the art club that we found ourselves a model of the human body to draw." Rachel looked at Annabeth's confused face. "It's Percy, if you didn't hear our conversation earlier."

"Cool," Annabeth said. "Thanks for helping me out. You're a nice friend."

"No problem at all," Rachel replied. "Hey, do you want to come over to my house with art club tomorrow? I saw you checking Percy out before." She winked. "You can check him out more and draw him." She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Annabeth sighed. "Don't tell anybody, though. Keep being a nice friend, okay?"

"Your secret's safe with me." Rachel led Annabeth to a door marked 'Room 37' and pointed into the doorway. "There's homeroom. See you later?"

"See you later." Annabeth said. She was definitely happy that she was making friends in this new place known as school.


	7. Quiet Classes and Questioning Looks

**Author's note-** **Hey, guys. Sorry for the late update. I'll try to update soon, okay?**

 **I have an idea for another Percabeth story but I don't want to write two at the same time so just warning you that story might be next.**

 **Anyway, enjoy and keep reviewing! I'm going to start dedicating my chapters to whoever has made the most meaningful review. This chapter is dedicated to Calefe. Your writing is better than mine! Keep being awesome!**

 **-SOS**

 **C** **hapter 6: Quiet Classes and Questioning Looks**

"Hello, my name is Mrs. Robins," the petite woman at the front of the class announced. Annabeth glared down at her desk. She had been looking out the door and across the hall, where Percy was leaning against the lockers talking to a shorter guy with black hair who was dressed all in dark colors. It was obvious that the younger guy was checking him out, though Percy looked oblivious to the hints he was getting. Annabeth strained to hear their conversation, but only caught snippets of it:

Shorter guy: "So, what's the deal with the new girl?"

Percy (with a little hesitation): "She's nice. Why, you like her, Nico?"

Shorter guy/Nico: "No! You like her, don't you? You don't want me to like her because you like her."

Percy: "We're just friends. I'm not ready for that kind of attachment, yet."

Annabeth sighed and turned her attention back to the front of her homeroom, where Mrs. Robins had stopped talking about school and was now taking attendance. "Annabeth Chase?"

"Present, ma'am," she said softly, and everyone laughed. Oh no, what did she do wrong? She made a mental note to ask Percy about it later. But Mrs. Robins smiled adoringly at her, and nodded. At least if she didn't have friends, she could be a teacher's pet, right?

Homeroom was only twenty minutes long, but it felt like the longest year ever. No one said a word to Annabeth, which she should have been okay with, but she was still debating what saying, "Present, ma'am" was doing to her social status. Not that she cared, but maybe if she became popular, she'd be able to get closer to Percy.

Finally, the bell rang. As she was on the verge of tears in her first class, health, when they started to talk about abusive parents and relationships, she didn't open her mouth or raise her hand, even though she knew all of the answers. She did complete the worksheet, which she turned in early and was the only person to get every answer correct.

This continued throughout the whole day. Annabeth didn't talk, but anything written was easy for her and she aced. Lunchtime was going to be the worst. When she reached the cafeteria, she didn't see anyone she knew, and was about to head to the bathroom to eat her peanut butter sandwich, when Percy grabbed her arm.

"Hey, where are you going? We're allowed to eat in the roof garden if the weather's nice. Come sit with us," he said, leading her up the stairs onto a beautifully gardened roof. "Rachel, Piper, and Jason are all here, along with this other kid, Leo. Just don't stare."

"Don't stare? _Oh_." Annabeth's eyes fell upon a skinny-as-heck Hispanic boy with curly brown hair. Even from a few feet away, she could see the deep scars running up and down his arms. That must be Leo. _Don't stare_ , she reminded herself.

Leo jumped up, and reached out his hand to shake hers. She shook it, staring at his huge smile. How could he be smiling and half gone from this world? He didn't give her the chance to think. "I'm Leo Valdez. Humor hides the pain. You should try it sometime," he said. "You're pretty easy to see through, Miss…?"

"Chase. Annabeth Chase," she said. Everyone was staring at her like she'd just erupted like a volcano and was spewing burning lava all over. "What?"

"Are you okay?" Percy asked her, holding her hands and rolling up her sleeves. Finding nothing suspicious, he looked at her questioningly. "You know we're all your friends. You can tell us anything, if you want."

"I know," Annabeth replied. "I'm fine."

But the problem with this world nowadays is that no one is fine anymore. And the words, "I'm fine", can hide anything under than sun.


	8. Lunch and the Life of Leo

**Author's note-**

 **So, not my best work, but I tried. The plot's moving kind of slowly, but don't worry, it'll all work out (I hope).**

 **To the guest that reviewed (Lavender5687) I don't have an updating schedule, I just kind of write whenever I have time.**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 7: Lunch and the Life of Leo**

"I'm fine," Annabeth said again, because no one seemed to be believing her. "Honestly, I'm fine!"

"Good," said Percy, though he still didn't look convinced, "then let's eat lunch."

"Oh…Uh, I didn't bring lunch," she lied, the peanut butter sandwich burning a hole in her bag.

"We can share," Percy told her. "Come on, sit down and get comfy."

She smiled nervously, and took a seat on one of the benches, in between Percy and Leo. Rachel, Piper, and Jason took up the other bench, eating their food while watching the conversation between her and Percy. Rachel winked when Percy turned away to get his food.

"So, Leo," she said, to change the subject. Leo turned to her, an interested expression on his face. She continued, "Are you new here too?"

She knew he was expecting a different question, but he smiled anyway. "Yeah. My mom died in a fire, and my dad's never shown up. I'm living in an orphanage, but I get to come here for one year because I've been selected as special, meaning I'm going to be genetically tested and used in scientific research, so they want me to get a better education." He paused. "I'm assuming you want to know about the scars, too?"

"You don't have to," Annabeth started, but Leo was already talking.

"I don't want to be genetically tested or researched by science, so I'm trying to mess up my life as much as I can so they rethink their decision." He shrugged. "So that's my story."

"Wow," Annabeth didn't know what to say. Everyone else ate their lunch, watching her.

"So, Annabeth, how is your hair so blond?" asked Piper, just to get the conversation moving again. "It doesn't look fake."

"Um, I take care of it?" Annabeth said, though she really didn't know herself. "How about you; how did you get your hair like that?"

"Chopped it off." Piper grinned. "Anyway, since we're sharing stuff about ourselves, why―"

"We're not," Annabeth cut in. "Only people who want to are sharing."

"Sorry," said Piper. Obviously feeling awkward, she changed the subject: "Percy, did your mom make your lunch again?"

Annabeth stared at Percy's lunch, which looked like a croissant and strawberry milk. "Your mom made the croissant by herself? Like, homemade?"

"The strawberry milk too," he said. "She got strawberry flavoring and mixed it with milk. Honestly, I don't know how she has time to do all this _and_ write a book that might get published."

"Really? Your mom's writing a book? That's cool." Annabeth smiled at Percy.

"Yeah; do you want to hear what it's about? I think it's going to get published one day," Percy bragged, and Annabeth thought it was cute that he was still such a mama's boy, even at the age of sixteen.

"Sure," Annabeth said.

"It's about a girl who's abused by her father so one night she runs into the woods and meets a boy walking his dog and they fall in love." Percy smiled, proud that he'd remembered the summary.

"C-cute," Annabeth stuttered. "I bet it's interesting. What's the title?"

" _Escape_ ," said Percy. "She's going to be famous, I know it."

Annabeth nodded distractedly, wondering what on earth she was going to do if her escape did not come soon.

 **Author's note-**

 **I was actually writing a book called _Escape_ a few years ago, but it really needs to be edited and it's not finished so I don't think it's ever going to be. Anyway, that was a random tidbit... See you guys next chapter, and don't forget to review!**


	9. Rachel's House and Running From Her Room

**Chapter 8: Rachel's House and Running From Her Room**

 **Hi, long time no see! Important A/N below!**

Finally, after a few more classes, school was over. Annabeth raced out of the building only to be stopped by Percy a few steps away from the crosswalk.

"Hi," she said, unsure what to do.

"What's up?" he asked. "I know Rachel's art club is tomorrow, but she asked if I could come today, and said I could bring a friend."

"Um, I don't know. It sounds like she wants it to be just the two of you," said Annabeth awkwardly, mentally cursing herself for trusting Rachel.

"No way, she specifically told me to bring a friend. And then she suggested you, because you've never been over to her house," Percy said, (thankfully) oblivious to the real reason Rachel had suggested that. "Anyway, are you busy after school?"

Annabeth shook her head. "But I don't have a phone, and my, uh, mom will be worried if I don't tell her where I am."

"That's not a problem," Percy replied, "you can use mine. Do you know her number?"

"Yeah," Annabeth said, nodding. "Can I call her now?"

"Go ahead, but start walking towards the parking lot. Rachel's chauffeur should be here soon," Percy said, and when Annabeth looked at him in shock, he wasn't kidding. She took the iPhone from him and dialed the number.

"Hello," she said, more formally than most people would speak to their moms. "Yeah, can I go over to my friend Rachel's house? Yes, I think so. Please! Thank you," she said finally, sounding more relaxed. "See you later." She hung up and handed Percy back his phone.

"So you can come?" he asked, and she nodded. "Awesome, let's go."

They walked over to the parking lot, where Rachel was waiting next to a big black car. "Hey," she said. "Get in, cause it's a long drive to my humble adobe."

Percy laughed, and Annabeth smiled uneasily. But when they reached the huge mansion, Annabeth realized why Percy had laughed. "Humble adobe" could be used to describe the _bathroom_ of the house. Rachel wasn't smiling, however.

"Shh," she said. "I don't know if my dad's home or not, but if he is, we're going to have to sneak past him to get to my room." The other two nodded, and followed Rachel up the stairs. "Okay," she announced once they got up to her room. "I'm really bad at drawing couple poses. You two are the perfect role models."

"Us?" Percy and Annabeth said together. Rachel nodded.

"Yeah, you two seem so comfortable together, you know?" She smiled. "I think you'd have the perfect chemistry for my drawings. Are you up for it?"

"I guess, if Annabeth's okay with it," Percy said. Annabeth was surprised at how quickly he responded, and even more surprised that he was for it. So she nodded, still shocked.

"Okay, I'll do it."

"Great!" Rachel took out her easel and pencils. "I want you to get into an about-to-kiss pose, okay?" She watched as Percy awkwardly pulled Annabeth into him and stopped right before their lips touched. Then she quickly sketched out their positions, and their expressions. She changed Annabeth's fearful expression into one like Percy's, full of wanting.

"Are you done?" Annabeth asked through clenched lips.

"Yeah. Now, new pose. Annabeth, I want you to lay on the bed. Percy, you go straddle her."

Annabeth gulped. This was just what her father used to do. "I-I can't," she said, and ran from the room.

 **Author's Note:**

 **Hey, guys, I'm not sure I can write fanfiction anymore. It's getting too hard to balance it and real life at the same time. Honestly, if I do keep writing, it'll be very slow and only one story at a time, which'll be this one. I'm sorry, but reviews motivate me and lately I haven't been getting so many of those helpful reviews. Maybe I'll reconsider but I don't know. Thanks for reading, and sticking with me. Keep being amazing!**


	10. Bathroom Encounters and Bad Excuses

**Author's note-**

 **Thank you all so, so much for all the support. I have made a decision: I will be writing as much as I possibly can, and hopefully posting chapters when I can too.** **I hope you enjoy this chapter. It is dedicated to _the Oracle of Akemi_ and _ZeynepD_ because I feel like it :)**

 **Once again, please review if you like it or even if you hate it. I'm always happy to read your criticism and comments!**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 9: Bathroom Encounters and Bad Excuses (and a Boy)**

"Annabeth?"

She was hiding in the bathroom, behind the door. Percy and Rachel were near, she could hear them talking, so she held her breath as they passed. Through the crack made between the door and the frame, she watched them.

"Do you think she's okay?" asked Rachel. She was tugging at her hair anxiously. Percy shrugged.

"I hope so," he replied. "Was it my fault? Does she… does she not like me or something?"

Annabeth tensed as Rachel chewed on her lip. "I don't think she hates you," the red-headed girl said finally. "Maybe she just felt awkward."

"Whatever happened, I'm sorry, Annabeth," Percy said as if he knew Annabeth could hear him. She closed her eyes as the two walked right past her. "Hey, isn't that the bathroom?" she heard Percy say.

"Yeah, why?" said Rachel. "You think she might've gone in there? But there're so many better places she could hide. My house is full of them!"

"She's never been here before," Percy pointed out. "Anyway, I only asked because I need to use it." Trembling, Annabeth almost gasped as she saw the doorknob turn. She leapt over the toilet, and jumped into the shower just as Percy entered.

He glanced around before walking to the toilet. Annabeth flinched at the thought of him naked. But it was either that or reveal herself. There was no way to get to the door without him noticing. Percy was going to pull down his pants in three, two―

"Wait!" Annabeth pushed oven the shower door. "Stop!"

"Annabeth?" Percy quickly zipped up his pants. "What are you doing in here?"

"I… Um, Uh. Hiding?" she offered lamely. When he shook his head, she tried to smile. "I'm not stalking you, I promise. I don't want to see you naked."

"After what happened before, I doubt you want to see me at all," Percy said, trying to make a joke. It was obvious that he felt bad for scaring Annabeth like that.

"No, I—it's fine," she muttered. "It was just something stupid."

"Well, I hate to kick you out, but I really need to pee," Percy said. "Can you maybe just step out?"

"Yeah," Annabeth said. She walked out and shut the door, almost running right into Rachel, who grabbed the blonde girl by the shoulders to steady her before she tripped and fell flat on her face.

"You okay?" said the redhead. "We've been looking all over for you." Then she looked around. "Hey, where's Percy?"

"Uh, bathroom," Annabeth said. Before Rachel could ask any more questions, Annabeth started to walk down the hallway.

"Where are you going?" Rachel's concerned tone stopped her in her tracks.

"Home," Annabeth said. "I… uh, just realized I have a lot of homework to do."

"We didn't get any homework," Rachel said, confused.

"I know, but I'm new so I have to fill out all of those forms, you know?" Annabeth played with her rope bracelet, a sign even Rachel would soon come to know as her lying. "See you tomorrow."

"Wait!" Rachel said. Annabeth froze and turned around slowly. What if Rachel knew that new kids had to have their forms filled out before they joined? But all Rachel said was, "You're going the wrong way. That's the hallway to the guest suite. If you want to go home, the stairs are that way." She pointed the other way.

"Oh." Annabeth breathed a sigh of relief. "Sorry. Thanks for having me."

"No problem." Rachel grinned. "I'll tell Percy you left."

"Bye," Annabeth waved as she walked down the stairs and out of the door. She was so grateful that she hadn't had to confess her secrets that when she walked down the street, she ran into a tan-shirted boy who was walking the opposite way.

"Hey," he said. "I was just coming to see you. Do you want to be my date to the dance?"


	11. Idiots and Ice Cream

**Author's Note**

 **Hi, long time no see! Anyway, I'm back at it again with another chapter. Also, not to run an ad campaign or anything, but I'd love it if you checked out my other stories and my fictionpress account. Just a reminder, you don't need an account to review! Thanks a lot!**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 10: Idiots and Ice Cream**

"Luke?" Annabeth faced the boy across from her. "What…?"

"Sorry, that was random. Maybe I should start at the beginning." Luke looked sheepish. "Um, you're cute. Not cute. Sorry. Hot."

Annabeth had read it was disrespectful for a boy to call a girl 'hot'. She wanted boys to call her pretty, or beautiful, not _hot_ like she was some kind of stove. "Um, I have to go…"

"Wait, I want to talk to you. Can you please come with me to the dance?" Luke was now looking kind of desperate. "I just wanted to… I don't know, this is coming out all wrong…"

"Sorry," said Annabeth. "I told you I have to go." She didn't know what, but there was something off about this Luke character. "See you at school tomorrow?"

"No, Annabeth," he stopped, looking at something behind Annabeth. She turned around and saw another girl (Thalia, she remembered from school) walking towards them. "Oh shoot, see you tomorrow, Annabeth." Without another word, Luke dashed off towards Thalia. Annabeth watched from a distance as Luke kissed Thalia.

"Well, good thing I didn't say yes," Annabeth said to herself. She started to walk down the street, wondering if she was close to her house. Since she barely ever explored, she didn't know whether she was lost or not. But then she saw a street sign that was the name of the street she lived on. She followed it home.

"Annabeth, home so early?" asked Tarah. "Is something the matter?"

"No, I'm fine." Annabeth smiled. "I'll be up in my room."

"Do you want a snack?"

"I'm good, thanks." Annabeth walked up the stairs, into her room. She opened her window and stared across five feet of trees to Percy's window. Secretly, she'd been watching him the whole summer, or at least listening to his conversations. He wasn't home yet, she didn't think. Annabeth laid her head on the windowsill, and stared off into the distance at the forest behind their houses.

She was so tired that she didn't even realize she was asleep until she heard someone calling her name. "Annabeth, you okay?"

"What?" she muttered groggily. "I'm awake." Then she opened her eyes. Percy was standing at the window across from hers, and he looked worried.

"You could have fallen down there! What if you got hurt?" He looked away, ashamed by his concern. "What were you thinking?"

Annabeth didn't answer. Her face turned red. She was so embarrassed at being caught asleep by Percy that she couldn't speak. She nervously twisted her rope bracelet. But Percy wasn't fazed by her silence.

"Hey, do you want to go get ice cream or something?" he asked. Annabeth's head shot up so quickly she was surprised that her neck didn't break or something.

"Okay," she said, biting her lip.

"Listen, I'm sorry about before. It wasn't my idea. I didn't know it would make you so uncomfortable," Percy said. Annabeth nodded.

"It's okay. I guess I was just a little confused at why Rachel would want us to do that," Annabeth said softly. "Anyway, ice cream?"

"Of course," Percy said. "My treat."

They met outside on the sidewalk after checking with their parents. "You know," said Percy, "it's nice to have someone my age on the street. There's mostly old people around here." Before Annabeth could say anything, they made it to the ice cream shop.

Percy counted his money. "Oops," he said. "I won't be able to buy myself an ice cream. I only brought enough for one sundae."

"We can share," Annabeth suggested softly. "I mean, if you want to."

"As long as you're okay, then sure!" Percy looked at her, and she nodded. He ordered a chocolate fudge sundae, saying, "You probably wouldn't like my blue sundae, so we can share this."

"Thanks," Annabeth said. Just as she was about to take a bite, the door to the ice cream shop opened and someone very familiar walked in. Annabeth paled, and shut her eyes to block out the sight. She bit her lip to stop the tears, and hoped Percy wouldn't notice.

But he did, and when he turned around, what he saw surprised them both.


	12. Surprises and Sorries

**Author's note:**

 **Okay, for some reason I have a lot of inspiration and decided to write another chapter. I think it was all the reviews! You guys are the best!**

 **Also, *giggles* you're going to hate me for this plot twist! *ducks away from the tomatoes you're throwing***

 **Hey, and I'm doing a new thing starting this chapter: if you review under a username, I'll read one of your stories and review back! I love giving and getting feedback, and this is the perfect way. Hope you enjoy!**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 11: Surprises and Sorries**

"Gabe?" Percy blurted out. Annabeth just stared, until she could form a coherent sentence. Even then, she only said one word:

"D-dad?"

The two teenagers looked at each other. "Wait, what?"

Percy shook his head, and looked at the door again. People in wheelchairs were being pushed into the ice cream shop, helped by hospital workers. In the first wheelchair was Gabe. Annabeth's dad. And apparently someone Percy knew too?

Luckily, he didn't notice them. Yet, anyway. Annabeth wanted to disappear from the look Percy was giving her. She sank down in her chair. She was hoping to never see her father again, and yet here he was.

"Do you want to go outside?" Percy asked. He looked angry, for some reason. Did he know what Annabeth had been through because of her dad?

"Okay," Annabeth said softly. "Yeah."

They walked out the back door, and Annabeth sank down the side of the building and sat on the sidewalk. She put her head in her hands. Don't cry, she told herself. No crying.

"I hate him," Percy said. "I hate him so much."

"How do you know him?" Annabeth asked, lifting her head up. Percy was sitting next to her, but there was a considerable amount of space between them.

"Uh, it's nothing."

"If it makes you feel any better, I hate him too." Annabeth didn't trust herself to say any more than that.

"When I was twelve, he—" Percy looked away. "Let's just say that's where my mom got her inspiration for her novel. He took her home from her job at the diner one night and—" He stopped. "That's your _dad?"_

"Oh, I'm so sorry. Percy, that's really… I," Annabeth swallowed hard, "I'm nothing like him, I swear. He's—"

"No, Annabeth. I'm not mad at you. I don't think you're anything like him," Percy said. "You're nice. I just want to know… Did he do what he did to my mom… Did he do it to you?"

Annabeth started to cry in response. She couldn't speak. Percy moved closer to her, and put an arm around her. "I'm sorry," he said. "No, sorry is an understatement. Annabeth… I don't know what to say. I… You shouldn't had to have gone through through that."

"No, Percy. Your mom shouldn't have gone through that," Annabeth wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry too. Sorry's not the word I'm looking for. I wish he never existed."

"But then you'd never exist either!" Percy looked at Annabeth, and frowned.

"That's fine," Annabeth said. "At least you'd be happy."

"Happy is a pretty hard word to define," Percy replied.

"You wouldn't care, you'd be happy," Annabeth accused.

"I wouldn't be happy if you weren't there," Percy said. "That's the truth."

There was a pause in the conversation. Annabeth took the moment to dry her eyes. Percy pulled a pack of tissues from his pocket and silently handed it to her. There were tears in his eyes too, but he wasn't crying like Annabeth.

"Seriously," Percy told her. "That's the truth."

"Really?" Annabeth looked at him. "Thanks."

"Do you want to go back home?" Percy asked. "You can come to my house. My mom's home. She can get us some cookies since we left the ice cream inside."

"If you really want me to," Annabeth said uncertainly. "I don't want to put her to any trouble."

"No, it's fine. She'll be happy to meet you." Percy smiled, and stood up. He helped Annabeth up, and hugged her. "You're okay now, right?"

"Soon, I will be." Annabeth nodded. "Let's go."

They started walking down the street, and didn't look back. At least, not until they heard, "Percy, is that you? You've grown up good!"


	13. Gabe and Good Talks

**Author's note:**

 **Hey, guys, I got a Wattpad. It has a few of my original works on there, if you want to check it out. My username is callmebianca1**

 **Anyway, enough advertising. Hope you enjoy this chapter, and once again, please review whether you liked it or not.**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 12: Gabe and Good Talks**

"Grown up well," was Annabeth's first instinct. "Actually, that entire sentence was grammatically incorrect." Correcting a random stranger? It didn't faze her, at least not until she turned around, and the words died on her lips.

"Hey, Annie," Gabe's ugly voice drawled. "Hey, Percy." Gabe was sitting in his wheelchair, and had apparently finished his ice cream before the other patients, so he was allowed to explore.

Percy took a protective step in front of Annabeth, and frowned at the man in front of them. "What do you want?" the boy growled. Annabeth placed her hand on his back, and pulled him back.

"You don't want to mess with him, Percy. I'm serious." Annabeth stared Percy down, and he sighed. Finally, both of them turned back around and started walking.

"Aww, aren't you two so cute?" cooed Gabe. It sounded like a dying duck by the way he said it. "I can't believe my little Annie and my little Percy are together. You going to have fun with him?"

"Shut up!" Annabeth shouted. Fire burned in her eyes. She turned around and glared at her dad. He grinned back at her. "You can't hurt me," she taunted. "You're in a wheelchair, weakling." She didn't know what had come over her. Maybe it was anger, or adrenaline, she didn't know. But finally, finally after so many years, Annabeth was standing up to her father.

"I'm healing pretty fast," Gabe told her. "You shouldn't get so cocky. I'll be back soon." He winked at Annabeth, then looked at Percy. "How's your mom doing, sweetie?"

"Don't you call me sweetie!" Percy spat. "You should be lucky you're still alive after what you've done. You deserve to die, honestly."

"Oh, I'm sorry I won't be able to ever see your mom again, but I know Annabeth would love to tell me where you live. Right, Annabeth?" Gabe tilted his head, and Annabeth wilted under his gaze. But she pulled herself together, enough to clench her teeth and run down the street, tears filling her eyes.

"Just… just leave," Percy said softly to Gabe, then took off down the street after Annabeth.

"You just wait!" Gabe yelled back, then wheeled himself around and through the doors of the ice-cream shop.

Percy found Annabeth outside her house, hiding in a bush. "I'm sorry, he's a jerk," she said. "I'm… I'm just really sorry."

"It's okay," Percy said, "I mean, it's not, but it's not your fault, okay? The world is full of bad people, and you just got stuck with one of them for a father. You've done nothing wrong. You don't have to apologize."

Annabeth nodded slowly. "I just feel like, somehow, I did something wrong. Like, why did I get him? Why am I stuck in this life? Why?"

Shaking his head, Percy sat down next to Annabeth. "Listen, okay? It is not, not, _not_ your fault. I'm not judging you for it, so please don't think I am. I just think you should tell someone who can help before anything more happens. Please. I don't want you getting hurt."

"You shouldn't care about what happens to me, Percy," Annabeth said. "You have your own life, your own problems to deal with. You don't deserve to be burdened with me, too."

"Is that how you think it is? That you're a _burden_ to me?" Percy's face hardened. "Annabeth, you're my friend. I love spending time with you. I love your voice. I love your laugh. I love your smile. I love your hair." Percy stopped, his face turning red. "Annabeth?"

"Yes?"

"I think I love _you_."


	14. Kiss and Keep it Together

**Author's Note**

 **FINALLY PERCABETH!**

 **Just to say again: I got a Wattpad. It has a few of my original works on there, if you want to check it out. I'm also entering the Wattys, so go check out that story and vote! Thanks! My username is _callmebianca1_ but there's also a link on my profile so :)**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 13: Kiss and Keep it Together**

"Me?" Annabeth stared at Percy incredulously. "You like _me_?"

"No," said Percy. Annabeth hoped her face didn't fall as fast as her heart stopped beating. She looked away and bit her lip. This was awkward.

She looked back at him. "Oh, I―" Annabeth was interrupted by Percy as soon as she started to speak.

"Annabeth, I don't like you. But I'm pretty sure I _love_ you," Percy said with a straight face, glancing at Annabeth. She half expected him to laugh and say that it was all a joke. But he didn't. He looked at her, as if asking for permission, and she nodded.

One nod was all it took. Pulling her into him, he pressed his lips against hers. Sparks flew through Annabeth's body as he took her hands and placed them on his back, then put his hands on her hips. They kissed until they needed air, then took a breath and kissed again.

"Thanks," said Annabeth when they finally pulled apart. She looked at the ground shyly. Percy took her chin with one hand and tilted her head up towards him.

"Hey," he said, "it was no problem to me." He winked, and Annabeth felt a blush spread down to her toes. Percy grinned. "Now, what were we supposed to be doing?"

"I… uh, we were going to go to your house," Annabeth said.

"And?" Percy prompted.

"Nothing," Annabeth said. "Unless you want me to start crying again."

"I didn't mean _that_." Percy grimaced. "We're only sixteen. I meant that you should tell someone about your dad. Someone who can help. Someone like my mom."

"Your mom?"

"She's nice, I swear. She's my favorite person in the world," he said, then, when he saw Annabeth's face, added, "next to you, of course."

Annabeth smiled. Percy put his arm around her and together they got up and walked to Percy's house. He opened the door (it wasn't locked) and walked inside, calling, "I'm home, Mom! I brought a friend."

"Who?" Annabeth heard from down the hallway. A woman with wavy brown hair and green eyes poked her head out of a doorway. "Oh, hello. What's your name, sweetie?"

"I'm Annabeth," she replied. "Hi."

"Hello. Percy, what are you doing just standing there?" The woman raised her eyebrows at Percy. "Go get some fruit and cookies for our guest." Percy nodded and walked into the kitchen, which was right in the next room, Annabeth could see. There were also stairs that led to a second floor of the house. The woman, who must have been Percy's mom, spoke again. "Come here, honey," she told Annabeth, who obeyed.

"Annabeth, we only have blueberries. Is that okay with you?" yelled Percy from the kitchen. Annabeth nodded, then realized he couldn't see her.

"Yeah," she said back. "Thanks."

"So," said Percy's mom, "you're Percy's new friend?"

"Yes, Ms. Jackson," Annabeth said politely.

"Oh, please, call me Sally," said Ms. Jackson. "Anyway, did you two meet at school?"

"Yeah," said Annabeth. There was just something about Sally that was trustworthy. Maybe it was just that Annabeth needed a mother figure, but she still really liked Percy's mom either way.

Percy came out with a bowl of blueberries and some cookies on a plate. The cookies were blue, but Annabeth didn't question it. She just smiled at Percy, who mouthed, "Tell her."

"Tell me what?" asked Sally. She took a handful of blueberries and started eating them.

"Can I?" asked Percy, because it was clear that Annabeth, who had frozen up, was not going to talk anytime soon. But she did manage to nod, though it was small.

Percy walked up to his mom and whispered in her ear what had happened. Sally didn't even react, except to hug Annabeth. Percy joined in the hug, and the only thing Annabeth could do was try to keep it together.

But they all started crying anyway.


	15. Us Now and Unstable Annabeth

**Author's Note:**

 **Hiya peeps! Long time no see, am I right?**

 **Anyway, here's the latest installment of this story.**

 **(Also, if anyone has read Magnus Chase and the Hammer of Thor feel free to PM me and fangirl/fanboy/fanperson about it because IT WAS AMAZING.)**

 **So yeah, enjoy, and keep being awesome! And please review; I'm almost to 100!**

 **-SOS**

 **Chapter 14: Us Now and Unstable Annabeth**

"The right thing to do now would be to tell the police," Sally started, only to be interrupted by Annabeth, who still had tears in her eyes. The crying had stopped, but feelings were still bottled up by each person in the house.

"I'm not that weak," Annabeth told her. "I don't want to be seen as a tattletale."

"Honey, you're sixteen. You're not going to be seen as a tattletale. Your dad… What he did was wrong. It's not like you were playing in the sandbox in kindergarten and he poured sand on you. It's much worse." Sally pulled Annabeth into another hug. "Please tell the police. They can help."

"They can't help. What'll they do? Put him in a mental institution? One day he'll get out," Annabeth argued, "and then what will I do?"

"We," Percy corrected from the corner.

"Um, what?" Annabeth glanced at Percy, who was slumped against the wall. He looked drained from the day, and was staring at her with sadness in his eyes.

"What will _we_ do," Percy said. "It's not just you anymore. You're not by yourself. It's us now."

"No, you can't get involved," Annabeth muttered, sounding like she was mostly talking to herself. "You can't, they'll get you too."

"They, who?" Sally inquired.

Annabeth suddenly shook her head. "I'm going to kill him."

"Um," Percy managed to get out. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"It's not," Annabeth said. "But he's going to kill me if I don't kill him first."

"Annabeth…" Sally trailed off. She looked like she was getting into "mom mode."

"Yes?"

"There will be no killing done. You will tell the police, Gabe will get his punishment. You will be okay with our help. Do you understand?" Sally finished.

"Come on, Annabeth, please," Percy begged. "Do it for your own safety."

"I-I can't talk to a police person," Annabeth said. "They're scary."

"We'll come with you," Sally offered. "We're here for you."

"We're all in this together," Percy said. Annabeth didn't crack a smile.

"Fine," Annabeth said, defeated. Whether she knew it or not, this decision would be a life-changing one.

* * *

"Boston?!" Annabeth exclaimed. "I can't move all the way there!"

"The police said you have to," Percy said sadly. "But you can't."

"Apparently I have relatives there, and they're my only living family members who aren't abusive." Annabeth sighed. She was regretting telling the police. They couldn't help. No one could help. She was helpless.

"Do you know their names?" Percy asked. "Maybe we could talk to them. Maybe Annabeth could live with us."

Sally raised her eyebrows at this. "Percy…" she said warningly.

"Sorry." Percy looked at the ground.

"Magnus and Natalie Chase," Annabeth said. "My cousin and aunt."

"You can't leave," Percy said, his voice thick with emotion.

"I can't," Annabeth agreed. "But what do I do, then?

"You have to listen to the police," Sally informed them softly. Shaking her head, Annabeth mumbled something so quietly even she couldn't hear herself.

"What?" Percy asked.

"I'm going to go home," Annabeth said. "It's all too much to process here."

"Okay, we'll walk you," Sally said, but Annabeth shook her head. She didn't want them treating her like she was fragile. She wasn't. She knew that. They should too.

"I'll be fine," she said out loud. "I'll see you at school tomorrow," she told Percy. "Bye."

"Bye," Percy called after her.

As Annabeth walked home, she let her mind overflow with thoughts and ideas. She didn't want to be in this situation. She didn't want to have this sort of life.

 _Maybe,_ she realized, _maybe she didn't want to have any kind of life._

Maybe she just wanted to die.


End file.
